Paragon season: LaBute, Shepard, “Pride” and Pinter

Hugh Dancy (left) and Ben Whishaw in the off-Broadway production of 'The Pride.' Photo by Joan Marcus.

Paragon Theatre will be cutting the cake on its 10th anniversary season by continuing to cut theatrical edges.

It’s saying something when the most conservative choice on Paragon’s new four-play season announced today is Harold Pinter’s masterpiece, “Betrayal.”

Paragon typically slates two provocative contemporary plays with two classics, which used to mean “Bus Stop” or “The Glass Menagerie.” Paragon is clearly taking a more adventurous approach to that term now, pairing “Betrayal” with Sam Shepard’s “A Lie of the Mind.” The latter production will again bring Denver Center Theatre Company veteran Sam Gregory (“Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf” and “The Real Thing”) to Paragon for his summer vacation.

Paragon is also well-known for championing button-pushing playwrights who often push people (like me) right away. No one in America fits that bill better than David Mamet apostle Neil Labute. Paragon will open its season Jan. 29 with the regional premiere of his “Reasons to Be Pretty.”

In May, Paragon will break new ground with Alexi Kaye Campbell’s “The Pride,” in which two actors portray two pairs of gay lovers in both 1958 and 2008, elucidating the striking differences in how homosexuals fared in London 50 years apart.

Jan. 29-Feb. 26, 2011: “Reasons to Be Pretty”: In Neil LaBute’s self-described “coming-of-age story,” four friends are forced to confront the reality of their relationships when one makes an offhanded remark about his girlfriend’s appearance. A love story about insecurity, cruelty and vanity, “Reasons to be Pretty” asks whether beauty really is only skin-deep. Featuring Brandon Kruhm. Directed by Paragon ensemble member Holly Ann Peterson.

May 7-June 4, 2011: “Pride”: Jumping from 1958 London to the present and back again, “The Pride” drives three British characters up against social and personal assumptions about sexuality and friendship. As loyalties are questioned and passions revealed, each of them discovers what it means to be proud of who they are. Featuring Barbra Andrews and Jarrad Holbrook. Directed by Taylor Gonda. Written by rising British star Alexi Kaye Campbell.

July 16-Aug. 13, 2011: “A Lie of The Mind”: Sam Shepard’s American classic, set in rural California and Montana, shows road-worn characters who become caught up in a deranged and piercing fable that explores familial dysfunction, loyalty and the nature of love. Featuring Tom Borrillo, Kathryn Gray, Sam Gregory, Jim Hunt and Patty Mintz Figel, along with Emily Paton Davies and Carolyn Valentine. Directed by Jarrad Holbrook.

Oct. 1-Oct. 29, 2011: “Betrayal”: In 1977 London, Emma and Jerry meet after their affair has ended. With each scene, we are taken further back in time now imbued with knowledge of what is to come. Harold Pinter’s story is a study in the choices we make and how they affect the paths of our lives. Betrayal will be directed by Suzanne Favette, featuring Emily Paton Davies, Warren Sherrill and Michael Stricker.